In many structural applications, such as in a vacuum system or the like, it is desirable that two structural members, such as a pair of tubes or pipes, be selectively oriented at a precise angle with respect to each other. To achieve such orientation is oftentimes a difficult task if the two parts to be oriented must be rigidly connected together, such as by welding or soldering. Such a task requires a considerable expenditure of time and effort. If the two structural parts are not properly oriented with respect to each other, the connection between the parts must be broken and the parts once again connected when the proper orientation appears to be achieved once again.
All of the foregoing requires laborious concentration to detail because of possibly having to duplicate the effort several times to couple a pair of structural parts together. It is important to try to keep such effort to a minimum without sacrificing precision and accuracy in coupling the structural parts together. Because of the foregoing drawbacks of conventional techniques of connecting two structural parts together, a need exists for improvements in hardware for coupling a pair of structural parts together while allowing the orientation of the parts to be changed as desired or needed. The present invention satisfies this need.